


Are you alright, friend?

by flynotfall



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Coping, Gen, Guilt, Minecraft, Not really coping well but ok, Shadow of Israphel, SoI - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-28
Updated: 2015-03-28
Packaged: 2018-03-20 03:00:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3634155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flynotfall/pseuds/flynotfall
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Honeydew and Xephos help themselves through the death of KP.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Are you alright, friend?

**Author's Note:**

> Since Simon's very sick, i thought i would post some old work bc im really sad trash  
> again, soi crap but i really love writing about the old stuff, idk why its a lot more fun.
> 
>  
> 
> also i know the quote at the end is originally Lewis, we're going to save the world but i dont like using irl names when doing minecraft writing shit so forgive m e

The thought of new adventures dazzled them at first. Finally, something to sink their teeth into, something to make them feel needed, and wanted. Without adventure, adventurers are nothing. However, this quest had been a struggle, and soon into it, they had realized that this was far beyond their level of skill. Honeydew had pleaded hard that they just accept defeat, go home and forget their failures. But Xephos was better than that, he could not accept that this was going to eat them whole, consume everything they had ever been. Knight Peculier offered to let them go, however he was not going to give up on his lover.  
  
Xephos was wise, Honeydew listened. He knew that he could have left the spaceman alone to fight the battles, but that was not right. Xephos was his best friend, and they were a team together.  
  
So they battled on through the tough adventure, twisting in dark passage ways, swinging swords, slicing through deep layers of skin, sending punches through bodies. Everything was going as smoothly as it could. Then their companion passed away. Knight Peculier was swallowed whole by a sea of thick acid. He died screaming, twitching and desperately thrashing attempting to escape the scratching of the liquid that he was surrounded in.  
  
Honeydew and Xephos froze when the man's body sank to the bottom of the pool. They stared, and after a few moments, they broke apart. Xephos turned to Honeydew, his lips parted in absolute shock that could have easily been mistaken as horror and fright. Honeydew was shaking, and he couldn't take his eyes from the green goo. 

"Honeydew." Xephos spoke, his voice was breaking, his vocal chords screaming as each sound escaped his lips. He wanted to stop now, for the first time ever, he needed to go home with Honeydew. The dwarf didn't move, the man's voice travelling past his ears. His senses had faded in fright, and now he felt numb.  
  
"Please." Xephos whimpered, tilting his head to the side slightly as he eyed the dwarf. His throat pronounced the word as a rough cry, smothered in tears. The spaceman held them back, staring at Honeydew still, needing for him to come back. Xephos needed his dwarf right now, because he was the only person there still.

 _"I need you."_  
  
Honeydew broke, and shifted his head to look to Xephos, who had glossy eyes that were staring at him deeply. The dwarf released a whine, and bit his lip to stop it from escalating into a full sob. Xephos released a shushing sound, and caught the taller man's hand in his own. 

"We're okay Honeydew." The spaceman whispered, the grip on the bearded man's fingers tightening slightly as he observed his reaction. Honeydew took a moment, admired the acid bath, and then turned back to his friend. His best friend who had done so much for him, his world. The dwarf sealed his eyes shut in pain, and returned the squeezing on their fingertips.   
  
Together they left the hand, the metallic hand that had now consumed the body of the noble Knight Peculier. They didn't share any words, because they felt too busy and too taken to do so. Xephos (who had taken charge, and was wandering in front, almost stumbling on his own feet) would turn back to Honeydew every few minutes, to check that the man was still pondering onward, following the brunette. To check that he was okay, that he wasn't shaking, howling or seemed different in anyway.  
"Are you alright pal?" Xephos would occasionally ask, turning his body fully to Honeydew, smiling lightly as he wide blue eyes admired the dwarf and twinkled in the deep bright moon light that stood over the evil tainted land of sand. Honeydew would return the slight smile, and nod again.   
  
They soon escaped, finding their ways back onto land. Xephos reached up, grasping the sandy earth as he yanked his whole body up from the deep metallic pit. With his head peering above the surface, he scanned the desert for any signs of life. Nothing. This wasn’t usual. It was night fall, which could be dangerous considering Israphel's army stormed through tainted deserts during the dark sky. Xephos clambered up onto the beige land, resting for a moment before he reached his arm down back into the area where the old man had been slaughtered. Honeydew was gazing up, his head tilted upwards to face the spaceman who stared down at the pit.   
“Careful friend.” He smiled, watching as Honeydew caught hold of Xephos’ hand. He sent his feet onto the wall for support, and his other arm dangled, until Xephos began to pull him free. With help, the dwarf managed to haul himself from the hand, throwing himself down onto the sand. He landed flat on his back, breathing heavily whilst Xephos sat on his legs, panting gently.  Honeydew gazed at the sky in awe, the way the stars wrapped around the black depths of sky, the way they twinkled and lit up the land, the way they danced around the moon. He allowed a smile to cross his lips. Somewhere in this horrible, monstrous world was happiness, there was love hope and everything you could ever dream of. And he knew it.  
  
Peering across to his friend, he noticed the unfit state the dwarf had sunken into. He looked broken, as if he was attempting to find anything to replace the broken memories that had been bottled for so long now. Xephos felt guilty, oh so guilty. For so long now,  _years_ Honeydew had pleaded with all his heart that the two of them leave, forget the adventure and go home together in one piece. But the spaceman had been protesting for so long that now, every boundary that Honeydew had built up had been shattered and smashed to the ground. Something that Xephos could have prevented, but didn't even try to.  
  
He had been too busy focusing on every other stranger's safety around him, that he forgot about his best friend's.  
  
"I'm sorry." The raven haired man breathed softly into the cold night air that had swallowed them. His skin stood up in the fresh frozen wind. He slouched, cupping his cheeks with his small pale hands. "I'm so sorry Honeydew." He whimpered now, peeping out from the fingers that were blocking his eyesight. The dwarf had fallen asleep. Xephos thought for a moment, how dangerous it was that he had fell into a sleep in the middle of no where, somewhere where Israphel could easily kill them right there. They were so vulnerable. He started to panic, and stood up quickly, examining the land for anywhere they could rest for a little while. And there, around 20 meters away stood an isolated cave, small and dripping in sand. It would do for a few nights. The spaceman exhaled into the air, and closed his eyes in relief. He could have slept right there and then, but he had to get Honeydew into a secure area before he decided to give up.   
  
Xephos managed to pull the larger man's arm up onto his shoulder, his legs dragging behind him as the spaceman trailed the dwarf along side him. He grunted and swore at the sky about how heavy Honeydew was. He would sometimes babble to his sleeping friend, words such as that he needed to loose weight next time, that he was going to make the night, that they were still okay. He knew well that Honeydew couldn't hear a word because he was so exhausted, and so enveloped in sleep, but he needed himself to know that they were going to be okay forever. They were going to live their lives to the full, because they had each other every step of the way.   
  
The spaceman slung the bigger man down onto the cave floor just on the entrance, the place was dark, and needed a quick sweep to ensure the safety of the dwarf. Xephos sat him up against the wall, placed a torch by his side, then began his hunt. His diamond sword was released from the deep pocket that had been sewed and repaired several times over the years of adventuring. The spaceman's feet were pushing onward, creeping forward slowly but as fast as he could, to get back to Honeydew. Inside he discovered a spider and a zombie. He shoved his sword through their bodies, and swung the blade down upon their skulls. Their blood decorated his coat and the metal of his trusty sword, along with the blood of many other enemies. He hoped that maybe one day the blood of Israphel himself would hang upon his sword and coat.   
  
Running back through the cave, he traveled to Honeydew's side once more, he fell to his knees and starred at his sleeping friend. Xephos' hand progressed to Honeydew's cheeks, and fell upon the skin. He was cold, not deadly cold, but soon maybe he could have been. Xephos winced and thought for a moment. His eyes hovered over his body, and he tore away the coat that hung onto his arms and chest keeping him protected and warm. But now he cared about Honeydew, and not himself. He had cared about his reputation for such a long time now, but now he needed to be there for his dearest friend. The coat was then planted on the dwarf's larger body, to keep him warmer.

"We should have gone home friend." He declared, ending with a sigh, he bit his lip and looked down through the cave. Monsters could easily spawn in that level of darkness. His tiny hands fumbled desperately through his backpack that had clung onto his shoulders all the way through the quest. He was surprised it hadn't been forgotten somewhere.  
  
He discovered a dozen torches to which he grinned at, and cursed happily at. He lit them as fast as his frozen fingers could allow him too, and placed a few inside their temporary home. He smiled lightly, his eyes scanning the torches as they flickered, the flame dancing and swerving in different directions. Xephos sat himself beside his dwarf, his knees coming up to his chest as he hugged himself gently, trying to stay warm. He needed to live tonight, for Honeydew.  
  
Xephos wanted to sleep, desperately. However, he knew that Israphel could be lurking, and he needed to be ready to face any attackers. He bit his lip, attempting to relight his energy, and keep himself occupied. Despite his attempts, he still found his eyes gently closing every now and again. Xephos blinked rapidly, before widening his eyes and breathing heavily. He thought for a few moments, before grabbing his backpack once more, and slinging the object in front of his body. The item was frayed and had been repaired many times by Knight Peculier. The spaceman winced at the thought of the old man's death, and buried his face in his hands. Where would they go? How would they continue. He questioned himself, before reaching into his backpack. The spaceman twisted and turned his engulfed arm around in the backpack. It was almost full of items that were needed for the adventures to come, the holy record, a clock, a dagger, and many other items. Xephos grasped the object he most desired, and yanked it free from the grips of his backpack. Scooting his bag to the side, he sprawled the map out in front of his lap so he could get a clear view of the picture decorated carefully onto the ancient piece of paper, faded and tinted brown.   
  
He smiled gently down at the map, overjoyed that finally, after months, they had recovered all the map fragments, and had attached them together once more. His large crystal blue eyes gazed in awe at the path of the map. What did it mean?  He stared, and sighed gently, unsure of what to do next.   
  
After a few hours of cold, and attempting to keep Honeydew alive and well, the dwarf awoken. He blinked a few times, the only sound being the cold wind whistling around him. However, Honeydew wasn't cold anymore, in fact, he had grown very warm due to the blazing fire right beside him, the jacket that had been planted on top of his larger body, and the heavy metal armor that was sticking to his pale skin. He peeled away the tiny jacket, and furrowed his eyebrows as he held it upwards to admire it. This was Xephos'. Xephos wasn't there.   
  
The dwarf stumbled to his feet almost suddenly, and twisted his head in every direction in search of his spaceman. He felt his breathing increase as the face of his best friend didn't appear before him.   
"Xephos?!" Honeydew called out, peering outside the lone cave, but being thrown back inside due to the harsh rain that was plummeting to the earth, and fell to his skin like rocks. Xephos wasn't in the cave, and that was for sure. He swallowed away the spit that was growing behind his teeth. After the traumatic events that they had just experienced, could the spaceman have actually given up? Left the dwarf alone at last? Honeydew began to panic, and bit his lip in worry.  
  
"You're awake!" A sudden voice chirped from outside the cave. Honeydew turned instantly, scanning his best friend that was now entering the cave without his jacket. The dwarf stared at his friend, he was so pale, almost blue, and was violently shaking. His arms were decorated in blood, from the pig meat he held desperately in his hands. Pigs were often found wandering lone in the desert, lost from their herd. This was always an amazing thing for adventurers who had been wandering the sands for hours. In their times of need, Honeydew and Xephos had relied on the lonely animals to keep their hunger at bay. Xephos sat beside his friend, and leaned against the wall for a few moments, his eyes closed in pain as he attempted to regain some strength, any at least. "H.. How y.. You fee.. feelin'.." Xephos stuttered out every painful word, that clung to his tongue and released in a raspy breath. The smaller man attempted to run his hands up his arms to regain some warmth, however they had locked in place, stiff from the harsh temperatures.   
  
"I'm fine.. Jesus Xeph.." Honeydew shook his head in disapproval at what his best friend had done for him. The spaceman had risked his entire life for the dwarf, and now Honeydew had to return that favor. The dwarf took hold of the bloody pieces of meat that Xephos' had been clinging onto so dearly, and lay them down on the cold floor below them. "You get warm, i'll cook you up some food." He smiled warmly to his friend, grabbing the small jacket and gently layering it down onto the brunette's shoulders. Xephos didn't protest, instead he raised his eyes to meet Honeydews, and took a moment to glare softly at him. The spaceman slowly grasped the leather, and pulled it tightly around his slim figure. The dwarf's fingers gathered in sticky crimson blood as he pulled and hacked at the food, chopping it into edible slices of pork. He turned back to face his ill friend, who was now snuggling close to the fire as he shivered gently.   
  
The dwarf got his hands on a spare torch, and instead of using it for it's real purpose, he pulled away the coal, leaving an empty stick. Stabbing the wood into the flesh, he shoved the meat stick into the fire smoothly and slowly, being steady and not burning the item. After swiveling the uncooked pork around for a few minutes, he tugged out a stick which was burnt and black at the end, and had a lump of cooked pork sat on the end, smoking lightly. Honeydew smiled to himself, proud that he had managed to actually cook up some food without the help from a furnace or Xephos. He rotated to his friend, who was eyeing him up with tired eyes that had dark bags hanging from the bottom of his lids. "Here." The dwarf spoke softly, handing the spaceman the stick. Xephos almost licked his lips, but resisted the childish gesture. He felt a need to raise his arm, however, the muscle was still too stiff to budge. He grunted slightly, straining his muscle. Honeydew frowned, before sitting down in front of his friend, his legs crossed.   
  
"Do you want some help?" The bigger man smirked, tilting his head to the side as the fire lite up half of his bearded face. Xephos scowled, furrowing his eyebrows in a look which threatened Honeydew in a slightly playful manner, he nodded slowly looking down to his knees almost in shame that he had become such a state. The dwarf raised the stick towards his friend's lips, to which the spaceman opened, before hungrily taking a bite from the chunk. With his teeth still sunk together in the meat, he tried to pull a bite away, but struggled since he couldn't move a lot. Honeydew chuckled, before nudging the stick from his friend with a firm tug. Xephos sat back into position, chewing the meat desperately. He closed his eyes and exhaled, smiling. Honeydew stared, admiring the sight of his friend being so relaxed at last. The brunette peeped up, opening his eyes and giggling deeply at their situation the best he could with his weakness.  
  
"I'm sorry Honeydew.." Xephos whimpered after he had swallowed his first chunk. His deep blue eyes had faded into a greyish blue, which was different to his usual light blue glow. He gaped at his now healthy friend's face, observing his reaction and next speech. The dwarf sulked lightly, shaking his head in confusion.   
"For what?" He lifted the burnt stick once more, and raised it to Xephos' mouth once again. The spaceman needed his strength if they were to continue their adventure as soon as possible. After the old man had passed, they knew deep down that they would have to retrieve Daisy, for him. No way could they simply turn back now, not after how many lives have been destroyed, killed, because of their quests and their enemy. 

"For.. For just.." The spaceman looked down to the cave floor for a few moments in thought. He felt guilty, but over what? What was the spaceman sorry about? If they had gone home, the secrets of Israphel and his cultists would never had been uncovered. Knight Peculier would always have been Old Peculier. The world would have gone to peril and be decorated in tainted sand again, and Israphel would have taken over once and for all. Maybe they had done the right thing to continue. Xephos tilted his eyesight up to Honeydew's curious expression. "For n-not bein-g there for.." The last word was a struggle to pronounce due to his temperature, and rapid shivering. "Y-you.." He whimpered out at last. Honeydew sat there for what seemed like centuries, before he opened his mouth as if he needed to say anything, but couldn't find the right words, and shut his mouth once more. His eyebrows furrowed, and he began to shake his head lightly. 

"Don't be so stupid." Honeydew hissed, lifting the stick up to the spaceman's lips once again for him to take another bite out of. Xephos could smell the cooked meat under his nose, the meaty smell made him more hungrier, so he sunk his teeth deep into the pork. The meat made a loud squishing noise as the man's fangs dug deep into the food, and tore away. Xephos frowned, as he crunched gently, before swallowing another chunk. "Don't be so  _flipping_  stupid!" Honeydew repeated, this time actually raising his normally calm, soothing voice. This almost made the spaceman flinch slightly, but he stood his ground, and sat frigid, glaring at his friend. The dwarf sighed lightly, still frowning as the emotion was stuck permanently on his face.   
  
The bearded man flopped beside his best friend, sitting down also on the cool ground below them. There was silence, for the first time in a while, silence had reappeared. Xephos' thoughts had shifted onto the knight's death once again. How he couldn't have just died, so simply and so undignified. A knight who had had a burning rage over one demon, tried his hardest but in the end was burnt alive on his way to kill the man who had stolen his whole life. It made the spaceman's stomach curl in an anger that he couldn't even put into words without swearing a lot. Honeydew began to think on Xephos' words. How could he even think like that? All that Xephos had done for him, and because of one little thing, he blames himself? It made Honeydew want to shriek at his friend, but he knew that that wouldn't solve much at all. So he kept it inside, and spoke slowly. "How could you ever even think that?" 

Xephos almost asked what on earth the dwarf was now talking about, but then quickly realized that before the long silence, they had actually been talking about something that had been on their minds for a day or two now. Xephos didn't know how to reply, so he slowly raised his shoulders in a shrug, and waited patiently for the dwarf's reaction.  "You've done so much for me Xephos." Honeydew turned his whole body to face his friend, looking the brunette in his crystal eyes as they glazed over in tiredness. The spaceman smiled weakly, blinking a few times. Honeydew returned the gentle smile, both of the friends staring intently at one another. Xephos then shifted, and looked down at his knees below him, stuck to the ground. 

"I feel so guilty.." He whimpered almost, he tried to allow his hair to drop over his eyes, to stop the dwarf from noticing his tears. He was better than tears, stronger than that. Honeydew crossed his legs, sitting slouched in front of his broken friend. Honeydew stayed silent, now it was time for Xephos to express his feelings. The spaceman attempted to discretely wipe his unwanted tears that were dripping from his lids. "I let you fall into a state last night.." He mumbled, before sniffling gently. He peered up to Honeydew, his eyes red and blotchy. It made Honeydew wince, and almost want to hug him in comfort, but right now that wouldn't fix anything. 

"That wasn't on you Xephos.." He continued his soft voice curling in Xephos' ears. The spaceman remembered how much Honeydew was there for him, and fell apart, sobbing hard as he instantly raised his hands to his eyes, collecting his wet tears in his fingers. Honeydew was being so understanding, so calming, but Xephos was breaking apart, never feeling good enough for Honeydew.   
  
"Remember when we first met?" Honeydew questioned from behind the pale palms. This actually brought a smile on Xephos' lips. He pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes, before dragging them down his face to discard of the liquid that was gathering in his eyes. Xephos did remember when they met, how could he forget? Honeydew, the only thing that even mattered to him, how could he forget about him?

"Yeah.." Xephos sighed lightly, before releasing something that was similar to a chuckle. Honeydew felt a warm smile prick on his mouth as he observed the smaller man's moves, his emotions, carefully. Them light blue lights gazed into his green ones, smiling gently. "Of course I do, you silly bugger." The spaceman smirked, almost scowling playfully as he ended his string of words that danced around Honeydew's ears like a song. A really great song. Xephos was cracking jokes, and typical phrases they would use day to day. His stutter had faded due to him hyperventilating and regaining quite a bit of his body warmth, which Honeydew was very pleased about.

"You falling from space, gave me someone to share these adventures with.." Honeydew remembered the feeling of warmth, acceptance and humble hospitality. For the first time, he had actually felt wanted by someone who was a real human being. "And without that, I'd probably be dead."   
The words made Xephos flinch and shudder, the thought of Honeydew dead made him want to hurl, his best friend could never die, he wouldn't allow it. They would have to kill Xephos before they got to the dwarf. Israphel probably couldn't even kill the dwarf, he was so powerful, and wouldn't go without a big fight. "And do you remember when Granny died?" He spoke, his voice fading gently as the sentence ended, which made Xephos' eyes flick up to see why the dwarf had gone suddenly silent. He had a slight sadness on his face, but was still determined to make his friend feel joyed again. Honeydew was slightly sensitive over the woman, he was sensitive about any friend that had been killed in the process of this quest, because they had been there for them at one point. People dying just seemed unneeded. Xephos didn't want to respond, he simply moved his head lightly in a nod. Honeydew took note of this. "You persuaded me to move on, and that helped me.. A lot."   
  
Xephos let his head fall back against the cold, jagged rock behind his body. He needed rest, but he his emotions were stopping that from happening anytime soon.  They sat in silence for the next few moments, the only sounds being the hissing and spitting from the wind that was sweeping by outside in the lone desert, and the soft sniffling by Xephos. Honeydew had returned to his seat beside his friend on the wall, gently inhaling the cold air that surrounded both heroes.   
"Please don't ever think that you have never helped me friend." Honeydew breathed into the air, before sliding his head to the side to face the spaceman. Maybe the dwarf was right, was Xephos over reacting? The spaceman tried his hardest to pin point that he was being silly, and whenever his thoughts shifted to move on, they would get pulled back by the deep claws of regret, over something that was eating away at his soul. Why hadn't he protected his friend? Why was he so useless that he couldn't even stop his friend from breaking down? He felt disgusted at himself that he didn't even notice how much the dwarf was suffering, and basically demanded that he sucked it up, and get the hell over his 'petty' problems.   
  
Xephos was silent through that night, because he needed some reflecting to do. Honeydew refused to sleep, in case Xephos' temperature dropped rapidly once more. The dwarf would sometimes leave, but make sure the spaceman was pressed against the fire as much as he could be. He would return with some food, whether it was a rat he had found lying in the sand, or even more meat, it didn't matter. Anything would help them onward. The spaceman would occasionally slip into a 20 minute nap, then wake in cold sweats, reliving moments were he had ignored his best friend, or even when Peculier passed. Swiping a palm down his cheeks, a sigh would exit his lips softly.   
  
The next morning arrived slowly, Honeydew trying his hardest to keep Xephos alive, and actually attempt to get the man into a fit state to travel as soon as possible. The two awoke the next morning, Xephos pressed against his friend's warm skin that lay on his chest which would rise then fall in a breath. Peeling himself from the bare chested man, he realized that the man's hand was protectively wrapped around him, snaking onto his side to pull him a lot closer than he probably was naturally. Shifting slightly made the dwarf's eye's gently flicker open. Xephos expected Honeydew to almost screech at the fact that they were both 'cuddling' but instead he smirked at his younger friend.   
"Hello." He smirked, in a low childish voice that wasn't his own. The voice he would do to act somewhat creepy. The tone that Xephos had become use to, the voice that Honeydew would use to embarrass the spaceman in front of new friends that he wanted to somewhat impress. Although they were both recovering from injuries, the weather and a deep heartache from the Knight passing, they managed to break a smile. Xephos actually felt himself release a real chuckle, his eyes widening to shock that he was actually feeling okay, feeling as though he could continue. And they would continue. Of course they would continue. For Daisy. For all the residents of Mistral City that had fled to Icaria for safety. For Granny who had passed when Honeydew sliced her in two. For Knight Peculier. For Minecraftia.   
  
"Hi!" Xephos lay his head against the wall, cold air being pushed against his neck which almost made him flinch and shiver. The fire had burnt out hours ago, and now lay a bundle of burnt sticks that were layered in ash like a cake. The spaceman knotted his brows, glaring at Honeydew's smirking face in confusion. "Why are we snuggling?" He questioned almost casually. Normal friends would have freaked out, swearing, making the atmosphere awkward. But the two adventurers were way past that level of friendship, and leveled up a while ago to the friendship with no boundaries. They loved it that way. They loved one another, and without each other, they'd probably be dead, or a lot less happy. 

"Scared you would get cold again." The dwarf confessed with a light sigh. He shifted, sitting up along side Xephos. The older man raised a hand up from the spaceman's slim hip, before gently landing his palm on the brunette's forehead. His fingers waited a few moments before pulling away back to his own sides. "You seem alright." Honeydew released a half smile, the corner of his lip twitching upwards. Xephos slumped, closing his eyes again. He was so tired, he wanted to forget everything about the past years, he wanted to run away and pretend that everything he had experienced had been dreamed. The thing is with reality, is that pretending doesn't work. Because you will find your find gently descending back into the black hole of memories you once wanted yourself to destroy.   
  
"I'm fine." Xephos claimed, lying slightly. Physically he was in a fit condition, his shivers and cold sweats subsided. The blue tinge on his pulp lips faded back into the deep rose colour. His eyes returning into the baby blue that gleamed whenever the sun's rays bounced onto the eye. However emotionally, the spaceman was broken. No matter how he looked, the smile he produced, the deep roaring laughter that erupted from deep inside his stomach. He couldn't help but find it hard to breath, find it hard to form words, find it difficult to think. The brunette smiled, his teeth gently peeping from under the lip. "How are you feeling?" He answered back, tilting his head so his brown locks of hair gently fell to the side. The dwarf shrugged his shoulders, before releasing a loud yawn.

"Never better!" Honeydew smiled, his arms stretching out to the side of his body. The ginger's eyebrows knotted, before he swiveled his head around to the entrance of the cave that they had been situated in for 2 nights now. Outside seemed finally calm, decorated with a light blue sky that met the horizon. "What time is it?" He continued, his eyebrows still sunk together in confusion. His voice husky and deep from the tiredness welling inside him. With a hum, the spaceman jumped to his feet, standing on his tip toes slightly as his legs stretched. He groaned, reaching up to the roof of the cave with a grunt. 

"I dunno.." He sighed lightly, before pondering to the exit, his head peering out into the tainted land. He winced as the sunlight beamed into his deep eyes, looking up to the blazing heat that radiated the sky. "I'd say.." He reached a hand up to shield his face. "Around 10 AM?" He called back to the dwarf, who was observing the spaceman's every move with deep fascination. No way did he want to continue moving if his friend was going to fall fatally ill. Xephos tilted to move back into their temporary camp, looking back to his watching friend. "Shall we get moving?" Xephos raised his eyebrows, a wide smile alight on his lips. Honeydew ran his palms along his cheeks, stretching his eyes as if to pull away any exhaustion that was still blooming inside his muscular body. Wind still gently flowed throughout the world, gently whisking tears of sand around the landscape. 

"Already?" Honeydew complained, slouching his shoulders, his head resting lazily against the hard rock behind him. Xephos almost screamed at his friend, his mouth crept open sneakily, as if it wanted to erupt with words that seemed needed in this situation. However when no words were actually produced, Xephos allowed his lips to seal once more before tilting his head to the side once more in slight anger. 

"What the hell do you mean?!" The lid flew from his calm and solitude. "We need to like.." Xephos shook his head and sighed, looking displeased to his friend who had now turned his gaze down to his feet. "We've got to carry on.." Xephos' voiced returned to a slight calmness once more. "Right?" He mumbled, his eyebrows tilted in confusion that scared him to the core. Honeydew had always wanted to find Israphel, wanted to slice him with his axe, stop the sand from spreading. Xephos felt dizzy when he heard his complaint. 

"You've always said that we should go home.." Honeydew spoke up, his sight lifting to face his standing friend who stood over him, his hands firmly attached to his slim, bony hips. "Maybe.. You were right.." Honeydew ended with a slight sigh. Xephos scoffed, running a pale hand through his brown soft hair that was freckled slightly with sweat when it hit his skin. The brunette ran a tongue across his teeth, before looking down to his friend.   
"So that's it? We just give up?" He waited a few moments for an answer from Honeydew. The dwarf released a slight whine, similar to the one he spoke when Peculier passed, returning Xephos' question with a pained expression.

"Peculier just died Honeydew!" Xephos cringed at his own words, but knew what to say to hit the dwarf. "Don't you want to make it up to him?" Xephos shook his head in disbelief and disgust. 

"Of course I do Xeph.." 

"Then why are you letting Israphel win?!" Xephos felt his fingers curl into his palms as his anger boiled in his blood. 

"This is not for us!" Honeydew scrambled to his feet, as if he wanted to regain some dignity and some posture. 

"What is that suppose to mean?" Xephos stared at his friend in his deep green eyes, feeling tears at the back of his lids. No matter how much he protested, this was effecting him. He felt hurt that his best friend was willing to leave the quest now that the knight had disappeared. 

"There is only two of us.. Okay?!" Honeydew confessed. 

"So we can't try?" Xephos almost pleaded, his voice breaking slightly as he whimpered out the words. Honeydew shut his eyes softly, before gazing at his friend. 

"Xephos.. Look what happened.." Honeydew swallowed. "Peculier.. Died and we.. We couldn't take it.." He sighed lightly once more, looking at his friend. Xephos bit his lip, before advancing forward to Honeydew, until he was directly in front of him. The spaceman swallowed back the tears and the pain that was escalating in his body, and stared at the dwarf.

"We can do this." He spoke broadly, and stood up right. "I don't care if.. If it's just you and me.." He blinked a few times, his eyes wide as they gazed into Honeydew. "We're smarter than him, and we're braver than him." His fingers wrapped around the dwarf's chubby hands supportively. "Trust me, we can do it." Xephos whispered, bringing the hands up to his chest, squeezing them gently. Honeydew furrowed his eyebrows once more, and sighed out a breath of warm air onto Xephos' face lightly. He took a moment to consider, biting the skin from his lip.  After a few chews of his pink lips, he released them, and nodded. 

"Okay." He mumbled, before nodding more confidently. "Yeah, you're right." He sighed and smiled weakly. Xephos felt the corners of mouth twitch into a grin, he revealed his pearly white teeth. The spaceman clasped his hands together with a loud slapping noise that bounced through the walls of the cave. 

"Okay.. Good!" Xephos couldn't wipe the grin from his face, he knew that they needed to do this, they had to try at least. Even if they failed, at least they could let Knight Peculier know that they tried their hardest.   
  
The two adventurers sat themselves down inside the cave, Xephos had sprawled Verigan's map along the floor, both staring down at it puzzled. Their fingers tracing the red line that ran along the path they had to take. 

"Where are we?" Honeydew spoke up after a little while of staring down at the ancient piece of paper that sat in their view. Xephos exhaled from his nose, before shrugging. The map was old, and very basic.

"I have not a clue." Xephos cupped his face in his palms, before groaning loudly. He peeped from his hands that were once covering his eyes. "Where do we go?" He resulted into biting his nails. A habit that Honeydew had seen him do since he was barely an adult. He was onto the 2nd nail when he hummed, wiping the wet on his trousers. "Maybe we should just go out, and see if we can.." Xephos twirled his slim fingers around in the air, before dropping them back down to his sides with a loud moan once more. "Ugh I don't know Honeydew!" He raised his soft voice, giving up and falling down onto his back to stare up at the cave's bumpy and unsteady roof. He breathed out silent breaths, closing his eyes. Maybe Honeydew was right after all, they couldn't even read a map, how could they be cut out for this? 

"Go out and see if we can see anything that matches the map?" Honeydew chirped, still scanning the map carefully, his voice monotone. Xephos hummed in approval, before sitting up, resting his elbows on the cold floor. "Well.. I don't see what else we can do really.." Honeydew clicked his tongue, and turned to face Xephos. They both shared a warm smile to one another.   
  
The two adventurers pulled the map into the backpack, and wrestled the thin material over their slumped shoulders. Before they advanced any further from their make shift base, they checked one another other for any pain, cuts, bruises, anything that could stop their adventuring as soon as they walked a few miles. Turning to admire their cave one more time, they shared a slight grin at the memory that lingered from the hole. They swore and cursed as they stepped cautiously up the hill, the sun already causing a hot sweat to drip down their faces and onto their already dirty clothes. When they soon arrived on the hill of tainted sand, they stood for a few moments, staring upon the calm atmosphere. Xephos held the 4 attached fragments firmly in his palms, peering down at it, then surveying the world once more. 

"Over there!" Honeydew squealed, noticing the half buried bones from a creature that could only resemble a dragon. Xephos' eyes widened as he scanned the creature that sat still in the distance, could that even be possible? "Is that a dragon?!" Honeydew's jaw dropped, tilted forward slightly attempting to get a clearer view. "Whoa! I think it is Xeph!" He jumped up in a huge excitement that was already welling in his stomach. The spaceman let out a subtle chuckle, shaking his head at how childish his friend was. 

"So where do we go after that?" Xephos joined his friend at his gawping at the bundle of discarded bones. Honeydew mumbled, grabbing the map from his friend with a slight snatch. He widened it across, gaping down at it. 

"Well then we go to the big green rectangle thing.. Looks like an oasis.." He squinted his eyes slightly, staring down at the item displayed. Xephos sighed.

"No no no I mean like... After the X.." The spaceman tapped his slim index finger against the 'X' mark on the map that had been hurriedly planted. He sighed, shrugging away the thought. "Okay.. Let's go!" Suddenly the thought dawned on him again. "Where are we going?" This time it scared him, what if the X wasn't the end? "Where do we go?"

Honeydew stopped his thoughts when a strong arm wrapped around his slim figure, pulling him close to admire the tainted sand as it dripped through the world like water, attempting to climb the wall that Verigan and Karpath had built hundreds of years ago.

_"Xephos, we're going to save the world."_


End file.
